Preparation of acetylene and hydrogen



l Patented Aug. 19, 1930 IIIIAIR'ILIN BANC.K,- OF BUCHABEST, RUMANIA PREPARATION OF ACETY-LENE AND HYDROGEN No Drawing. Application filed March 3, 1927, Serial No. 172561, and in Germany March 15, 1926.

7 Process for the preparation of acetylene and hydrogen, from methane and other hydrocarbons.

This invention relates to the art of treating methane and other hydrocarbons for the preparation of acetylene and hydrogen.

I have established by systematicexperiments that the yield from the well known reaction:

depends on the contact between the quantity of methane and the surface heated to temperatures higher than the temperature for total dissociation of methane, i. e., for practical purposes, between 1400 and 2000 C.

The yield from this reaction .of methane into acetylene. and hydrogen increases and approximates more closely the theoretical yield in proportion to the extent of the surface of contact. In other words, it is dependent on the extent to which the whole of the gas is brought into contact with the surfaces heated to the temperatures necessary for the reaction.

The process is carried out in the main by passingv the gas, either preheated or not,

through an electric furnace with carbon electrodes. In order to get a greater contact surface the interior of the furnace is filled with pieces of carbon irregularly broken up, or of some uniform shape but of different sizes. In an electric furnace with electrodesof carbon fragments I obtained a yield of about 70% of acetylene (exactly 68.8%).

I have further-found that the yield in the transformation of methane into acetylene can be increased if one uses as resistances in the electric furnace any variety of carbon or material which contains carbon and is good conductor of electricity, or any other material which has a large contact surface and is made an electrical conductor by one of the known means and is raised to and kept the temperatures necessary for the reaction, i. e. temperatures higher than 1400 C.

I have also found that one can use in the furnace as contact mass, any porous material which can withstand the temperatures mentioned above, at which the reaction (1) takes .which had been' found necessary for the transformation of a cubic meter of methane,

can be reduced to about same quantity.

I have noticed and determined experimentally that to increase and maintain the .contact surface at the necessary reaction temperatures one can employ other electric furnaces, or other means of heating without resistances.

'I have found that it is possible to employ for the same purpose, and with the same result, an arc furnace with the are expanded by a magnetic field or by a strong current of gas. In all cases one must pay scrupulous attention to the tightness of the apparatus so as kw/hr., for the RElSfiUED to prevent any access of air. It is also absolutely necessary to prevent the diffusion of hydrogen which is necessary for maintaining the stability of the acetylene at temperatures lower than thetemperatures of formation of this hydrocarbon.

By experience. I have found that the following things'are necessary to assure the greatest yield from this reaction and to keep methane. gaseous or gasified hydrocarbons, mixtures 9o lene one is not obliged to prepare it only from One can obtain it from all other of natural or synthetic hydrocarbons, and in general from any other organic material under the condition that it should first pass through the methane phase, with or without the addition of hydrogen. I I have shown by xperiments that one condition which assists the transformation reactemperature of between 1400 tion of methane by preventing the dissociation of a part of the acetylene (i. e. by increasing its thermic stability) is to dilute these gases with other inert gases under the conditions under which the reaction takes place.

Claims:

1. The process of obtaining acetylene from methane consisting in passing preheated methane through a carbon mass heated to a temperature of between 1400 and 2000 C.

2. The process of obtaining acetylene from methane consisting in passing preheated methane through a carbon mass heated to a and'QOOO C. and out of'contact with air. v

3. In the process of obtaining acetylene from methane, the step of increasing the thermic stability of said methane by preheatv ing it with an inert gas.

In testimony whereof I have signed my. name to this specification.

M. BANCK-. 

